New Book by Alumna Stephanie Kadel Taras Tells Story about Founding of Florida Presbyterian / Eckerd College

At a time when we need a new generation of change agents to transform our country and our world, we can look back at what it took in the 1960s to transform how young people were prepared to be noble citizens, community leaders, and moral, thoughtful, caring men and women.

In a new book, On Solid Rock: The Founding Vision of Florida Presbyterian / Eckerd College (Eckerd College, 2008), Stephanie Kadel Taras, Ph.D., a 1989 graduate of Eckerd College and granddaughter of the founding president, William H. Kadel, recounts the history of one liberal arts college that demonstrates why our society needs liberal arts colleges and the graduates they produce. The Burning Bush, a print by artist Robert O. Hodgell, one of the College's first Visual Arts faculty, graces the book's front cover.

"On Solid Rock is the story of how a few men fought for a dream of a college like no other, and in the process fought for justice," says Dr. Kadel Taras. "It is a story of a small college in the 1960s and 1970s that reveals the story of our nation at that time."

Anchored in the College's founding and its first ten years, On Solid Rock is a history of a southern college born in the civil rights movement that became a leader in integrating higher education and college sports. It explains why Eckerd College is located in the City of St. Petersburg and how the College and the City have impacted each other. It is a story that tells us it takes courage - more than mission and vision - to create a lasting liberal arts college and curriculum.

Dr. Donald R. Eastman III, President of Eckerd College, commissioned On Solid Rock. He says, "Stephanie has given life to the inimitable spirit of the College in its early days - a spirit that continues to inform and inspire everyone who is a part of Eckerd College."

In the process of researching the College's history, Dr. Kadel Taras interviewed founding faculty and surviving family members, former and current faculty, staff, and administrators, and students from the founding class and the College's early years: Louise Bevan, Clark Bouwman, Jim Carlson, Jim Crane, Sarah Dean, Carolyn Horton Hall '64, James R. Harley, Keith Irwin, Katharine Meacham Conover, Peter Meinke, Sterling Watson '69, Tom West, William C. Wilbur, and Grover Wrenn '64; and others, who have passed, Marjorie Carter, Kenneth Keeton, John Satterfield, and Billy O. Wireman. Their names are recognizable to the thousands of alumni and students who recall Florida Presbyterian / Eckerd College as a place of transformation.

From production to publication, On Solid Rock has been a collaborative effort across the College's decades of graduates, all of whom are employed by Eckerd College. Cathy McCoy '71, Acquisition Assistant in the Technical Services area of the library, assisted Dr. Kadel Taras with accessing previously recorded interviews and archival materials. Creative Director Dawn Régan Ellenburg '86 designed the book and managed its production.

Dr. Kathryn Watson '69, Associate Dean of Faculty Development for Academic Affairs and Assistant to the President for Academic Affairs, was the driving force behind On Solid Rock becoming a reality. "My life and this book have been transformed by my mentor, Kathy Watson," says Stephanie. "Her guidance of this book from inception to completion and the joy of our collaboration have strengthened me and this story. Knowing that I thrive when loved, she has been unstinting."

On Solid Rock is available for purchase for $25.00 by these two methods:
1) IN-PERSON: Visit the Eckerd College Bookstore (727-864-8350) located in Edmundson Hall. The Bookstore will be open during the holiday break: Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Bookstore will be closed December 25 and 26 and January 1 in observance of Christmas and New Year's Day.
2) ONLINE: Purchase the book online through the Eckerd College Alumni web site. (Please note: On Solid Rock was self-published by the College. Online purchases are available through the Alumni site only. It is not available for purchase through the Bookstore's Web site or the Web sites of Barnes & Noble and Amazon).

On Solid Rock: The Founding Vision of Florida Presbyterian / Eckerd College
An excerpt from the Prologue

That summer a black student had applied for admission to Florida Presbyterian College. He had graduated from St. Petersburg's all-black Gibbs Junior College, and there was no question among those who reviewed his application that he was qualified to transfer to Florida Presbyterian and join the class of 1964.

The all-white, mostly male faculty of FPC had come from both northern and southern states, but every one of them expected to be teaching in an integrated college. None of them would have come to Florida if he had thought the college would not accept black students. But the unthinkable happened: When the trustees heard about the new student, a slim majority voted not to accept him.

John Bevan, the dean of faculty, remembers, "I don't know of anything that has shaken me in higher education in my life experience more than that. It was the complete devaluation of everything we had done."

Bevan asked the president of FPC, William Kadel, what it would take to get the board back together and reconsider. Kadel said, "Resignations." By the next day, Bevan handed Kadel twenty-two resignations, with Bevan's own letter on top.

Copyright © 2008 On Solid Rock: The Founding Vision of Florida Presbyterian / Eckerd College (Eckerd College, 2008) by Stephanie Kadel Taras, Ph.D.

About the Author
Stephanie Kadel Taras, Ph.D. is a 1989 graduate of Eckerd College and granddaughter of the College's founding president, William H. Kadel. She has been a professional writer for eighteen years. Her company, TimePieces Personal Biographies in Ann Arbor, Michigan, helps people preserve the stories of their lives in books that honor them. She has interviewed hundreds of people about their lives and work, including teachers, business owners, community leaders, musicians, farmers, and parents. She also teaches about life story writing and interviewing.

Stephanie received her Ph.D. in education and sociology from Syracuse University and an MA from the University of Michigan. She recently completed a term as vice president of the international Association of Personal Historians with more than 600 members in 11 countries. When she's not writing institutional histories or biographies, Stephanie writes music reviews for the Ann Arbor Observer and people profiles for business and arts magazines.

Eckerd College: "Transforming Lives for 50 Years"
In 1958, the Florida Synod of the Presbyterian Church, U.S., voted to establish Florida Presbyterian College. Students arrived two years later. The school was renamed Eckerd College in 1972. The rest, as they say, is history.

Located in St. Petersburg, Florida, Eckerd College was founded in 1958 as a private, coeducational college of liberal arts and sciences related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA). Eckerd's 1,800 residential students from 45 states and 28 countries choose among thirty-eight majors leading to a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree. In addition, 1,000 students are enrolled in the Program for Experienced Learners, a bachelor's degree program for adult learners. Eckerd's Leadership Development Institute executive education program, Academy of Senior Professionals at Eckerd College (ASPEC), Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and Elderhostel identify the college as a national leader of innovative programs in continuing education and lifelong learning. A Phi Beta Kappa institution, Eckerd is one of only 40 schools listed in Loren Pope's Colleges That Change Lives.